The debacle that was Rob Ford’s attempt to build a Sheppard subway and the prolonged squabbling at council that that caused led to many at Queen’s Park to question whether the province should be offering money to a group that clearly couldn’t get its act together. A plan like OneCity is a way of showing that Toronto is a mature partner that it is willing to play ball and carry its weight. Fair enough.

But until those cash-strapped other levels of government find room to make real cash commitments, OneCity is just a marketing gimmick, seeking to dazzle politicians at Queen’s Park and on Parliament Hill. In better times, it might have had a chance. But these aren’t those times.

The city of Toronto was hunkering down Wednesday for another bitter transit battle, as councillors lined up on opposing sides of a $30-billion plan heralded by TTC chairwoman Karen Stintz as a chance to “bring the city together” and derided by the mayor’s allies as an unrealistic tax grab.

The announcement by Ms. Stintz and TTC vice-chairman Glenn De Baeremaeker of the OneCity transit expansion plan — which calls for a tax increase to fund 170 kilometres of new subway, streetcar, light-rail and bus lines — underscored the shifting power dynamics at City Hall, with Mayor Rob Ford losing control of key files as his council colleagues jockey for position in the run-up to the 2014 election.

Ms. Stintz was quick to brush aside questions on whether she may be prepping her own mayoral platform, noting simply: “This is about a transit plan, and we have a mayor.”

But Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday said the way the two councillors released their plan, “out of the blue” and without advance notice for key council colleagues such as himself, was evidence of political gamesmanship.

“It looks to me like it’s just political posturing, [and] homeowners will not stand for it,” Mr. Holyday said, calling the plan’s funding model misguided. “Instead of asking for more taxes, we should be taking a look at where we’re already spending our money; what is it we’re spending it on that’s not as important as public transit?”

The OneCity plan envisions six new subway and train lines, 10 light rapid transit lines and five bus and streetcar lines, funded by the equivalent of a 1.9% property-tax increase. Under the so-called CVA uplift funding model, the city would capture a portion of annual property-value increases for a dedicated transit fund, which would amount to a gradual tax increase of $180 a year per average household by 2016. That would raise $272-million per year after the four-year phase-in, Ms. Stintz said, noting while this alone would not cover the annual capital costs of the multibillion-dollar plan, the provincial and federal governments may agree to make up the rest once they recognize Toronto has “skin in the game.”

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The 30-year, $30-billion plan comes months after a fractious council debate on the merits of subways versus streetcars, which effectively ended when council approved four new light-rail lines. The OneCity projects would be in addition to the four lines, with the exception of the Scarborough RT, which Ms. Stintz and Mr. De Baeremaeker propose replacing with a subway.

“What we learned from the last debate was that there was a division between what the suburbs felt they were getting in terms of transit and what they believed the downtown core was getting in transit, and we think it’s very important that we bring the city together as one city,” Ms. Stintz said.

The plan is slated to come before council next month, but only as a preliminary step; should council vote to study the proposed network of transit projects, it would come back for a more substantive debate in the fall.

Priority projects would include the Scarborough subway — perhaps an olive branch to Mr. Ford, who has pushed unsuccessfully for subway expansion since the day he took office — and a streetcar line along the east waterfront. Other key projects include a Don Mills express line from Queen station to Eglinton Avenue, an extension of the Yonge subway line to Steeles Avenue and an extension of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT to Pearson Airport.

The CVA uplift funding model would require provincial approval, something Transportation Minister Bob Chiarelli said Wednesday he would need to consider, along with the city’s request for more provincial transit dollars.

“Those are all very big items that have to be dealt with and they’re not going to happen, they’re not going to be agreed to overnight, that’s for sure,” he said.

Bruce McCuaig, president of the regional transportation authority called Metrolinx, welcomed the OneCity plan, noting in a brief statement: “Metrolinx will be interested in how this proposal complements the broader regional network and aligns with The Big Move.”

Councillor Adam Vaughan suggested the mayor — who did not respond to multiple requests for comment Wednesday — was stuck in the past on the transit file, saying the funding question deserved an “honest conversation.”

But Ford ally Denzil Minnan-Wong questioned why Ms. Stintz would advocate a plan that is largely unfunded, considering she opposed the mayor’s earlier Sheppard subway plan for the same reason.

“You’re $22-billion short in this plan,” Mr. Minnan-Wong said. “What we want is a realistic plan… Drawing a picture does not necessarily put shovels in the ground.”

“They’re looking at the big challenge square on, which is how do you pay for this stuff. There’s no point in having big dreams if you’re not prepared to have the more complicated talk about how you’re going to pay for it.” — Adam Vaughan

“It’s a great working document. I like the map. I’ve got a little problem with the math.” — Shelley Carroll

“[Two councillors] want to try, go ahead. Is that the way we should be planning transit in the city? I don’t think so.” — Peter Milczyn

“It’s the adult conversation that many of us have been saying we need to have as Torontonians. People have talked a lot about gridlock, that they want to get home faster, they want to get to work faster and they want better mobility in the city, so here we have a plan, this is how you do it folks… The adult part is, well ‘guess what folks, these things don’t come free.’ ” — Joe Mihevc

“It’s a very courageous plan. It’s putting your money where your mouth is and it’s insisting that the senior levels of government come to the table, and it’s a plan with a long vision.” — Maria Augimeri

“If we’re just kind of banging on the door of Ottawa and the province saying ‘please, please, please,’ but we’re not willing to put anything up, it’s a harder case to make.” — Josh Colle

“You’re $22-billion short in this plan. What we want is a realistic plan and we want to know that we can build transit. Anyone can draw lines and build a transit plan and make it look nice on the back of an envelope. Drawing a picture does not necessarily put shovels in the ground… Where does that $22-billion come from?” — Denzil Minnan-Wong

“It’s a tax city plan, it’s not a OneCity plan. It’s unfunded. I don’t think they’ve run the numbers properly.” — Doug Ford

“Instead of asking for more taxes, we should be taking a look at where we’re already spending our money; what is it we’re spending it on that’s not as important as public transit?” —Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday

“The scope of her plan and the fact that it ignores everything that came out of that [March] meeting and she is claiming she has the votes for it, maybe she is being rhetorically aggressive. Either that or a coup-master extraordinaire.” — Norm Kelly

“At first glance, if seniors are going to have to absorb a 2% tax increase, they are going to be eating cat food.” — Giorgio Mammoliti

“A user-based approach is more effective. It is a system based so that all users play a part. This approach penalizes just the Toronto residents.” — Jaye Robinson

“She hasn’t spoken to me yet. Funny that the budget chief is the last to know.” — Mike Del Grande

“It is a great step forward. We need to be building transit all the time and this gives us a funding tool.” — Ana Baliao

“I think it is a lovely daydream conversation starter… It’s is going to be very politically contentious and uneven about who pays.” — Gord Perks

“There are a lot of great ideas, but what has been lacking is a coherent plan to provide consistent funding over a long period of time…this mornings announcement knits together a large amount of the plan.” — John Parker

“I want to vote on the facts, so I couldn’t say yes or no at this point.” — Michael Thompson

“Looking at the map, it is a very interesting proposition…I was at a meeting this morning and the subject came up and one of the individuals from North York said, ‘I would pay this increase, it’s reasonable and it’s going to something good.’” — Mike Layton

“I’d rather not comment on that plan, I’ve been advocating for a regional funding plan that will connect Toronto…but also that the cost should be carried by not just Toronto but residents of the Golden Horseshoe and I will continue to advocate for a strategy I believe in.” — Josh Matlow

“It’s comprehensive plan that is well thought out, it connects the city, it has a nice mix of subways, buses and LRTs… I like that it is a 30-year plan we are finally looking forward, I wish 30 years ago they had done that.” — Mary Fragedakis